Fast forward to 2011, smart phones and hand held computing devices have definitely matured. One of the apps I’m most impresses with is bump. This technology takes the “beam my contact info” to a whole new level. Its now possible to beam or bump as I will now refer to it all types of different content between devices.

Within bump I was struggling with how to setup two different contacts for myself, I wanted one for business info and one for personnel info. I checked the bump web site, tuned to google and still couldn’t find the answer so I emailed bump. When I download a free app I don’t have an expectation of getting good customer service, matter of fact I don’t expect the free app comes with any customer service. To my (pleasant) surprise bump replied to my email in less than 12 hours. After providing bump with the platform I was using they quickly emailed me back the instructions to accomplish what I was looking to do. Here are the steps that Sadie from Bump Technologies, Inc. sent me:

How to create multiple profiles in bump (iOS)

1. Start by filling out your contact card to include all of your information. Work and personal alike. Select save profile as something like “all info” or something you’ll recognize later.
2. Once you have finished that open up the ‘Contacts’ tab. You should see all of your information laid out. Then all you need to do is tap on all of your work information so that there is a check mark next to each line, and your personal information will be dimmed.
3. Scroll down and hit “save as a profile..” and type in a name to indicate that profile will be used strictly for professional networking.
4. Then do the same but for your personal information, make sure each line has a check next to it and each of your professional info is dimmed. Hit “save as a profile..” and name it.

These directions were easy to follow and accomplished what I was looking to do. Bump also offered to walk me through the process over the phone if I was still having issues.

Bump is an innovative and useful product with excellent customer service!

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#10. Frank Miller and Jim Lee: Batman and Robin

Frank Miller has always been a writer that I have enjoyed reading (and his artwork is just as dark and dramatic). The work he has been turning out with Jim Lee on the Batman and Robin title is some of his best.  Miller has visited this character many times in the past, and each time he has brought something special to the book. However, with the help of Lee, this title is some of the gruffest, roughest work I’ve seen featuring the Dark Knight.  The duo often lets many months lapse between titles (I suppose that’s the byproduct of Miller’s new career in film), but it’s always worth the wait.

#9: Damon Lindelof and Leinil Francis Yu: Ultimate Wolverine vs Hulk

Speaking of “worth the wait,” the Ultimate Wolverine vs. Hulk book took years to deliver just a few short issues. But I (for one) didn’t mind.  The teaming of Lindelof (writer and co-creator of ABC’s Lost) and Yu (who seems to be just about everywhere right now) was simply perfect. Their take on the Hulk was funny, pointed and memorable.  And Wolvie has never been such a bad-ass.  The visual of The Hulk ripping Wolverine in two, then throwing half of him miles into the mountain was only topped by The Hulk eventually eating his adamantium-laced opponent.  Tasty!

#8: The Web Heads: The Amazing Spider-Man

The #8 Top Team-Up is comprised of the large group of  Web Heads at Marvel (Gale, Guggenheim, Kelly, Slott, Van Lente, Waid, and Wells).  Ever since Marvel drastically altered the direction of Spider-Man (with the One More Day / Brand New Day arc) they have been releasing the Amazing title three times a month (which is awesome for the fans, although a little challenging for the pocketbook). The rotating teams of artists and writers (each work on one to four issues at a time) have all been stellar. Paul Azaceta’s stylized artwork is great (almost like Sean Phillips), and he even made Electro scary/cool again.  Joe Kelly’s writing is extremely funny.  Mark Waid has crafted a creepy Vulture character that actually gave me nightmares.  And Mike McKone’s Black Cat reminded me what it was like to be a teenage boy. Thankfully, all of the writer/artist teams have been carefully overseen by the ever-watchful eyes of the Web Heads committee.  I also enjoy the witty, no-holds barred Letters Column from editor, Stephen Wacker (and occasionally, Assistant Editor, Tom Brennan).

#7: Mark Millar and Steve McNiven: Wolverine, Old Man Logan

Having previously teamed up for Marvel’s Civil War, and later on the Nemesis title, Millar and McNiven make one Hell of a creative team.  Mark Millar is a great writer, although many of his stories seem similar to me.  Steve McNiven is one of my favorite current artists (and a really nice guy too — I met him at the Emerald City ComiCon a couple of years ago), however sometimes his art can miss the mark.  However, with the Old Man Logan storyline, these two superstars nailed it from the very first page to the last.  Wolverine will never be the same (case in point: after this run, I canceled Wolverine from my pull-list).

#6: Brian Michael Bendis and Alex Maleev: Spider-Woman

Bendis and Maleev have been teaming up for some time.  And, while my favorite work from this paid has to be the long run they turned in for Daredevil, I love the books they are currently delivering for Spider-Woman.  BMB’s writing is easy to read (he write  thought-bubble-dialog as well as Stan Lee did), and Maleev’s artwork is mesmerizing.  His photo reference for Jessica Drew (Jolyn Carpenter) must be a strong, sexy woman since his illustrations of the character are dependably depicted in that way.  This is one of those few books where I find myself reading it twice — once to enjoy the story, and a second time to savor the artwork.

#5: Brian K. Vaughn and Tony Harris: Ex Machina

I’ve been following this book from the beginning and I am constantly impressed with Vaughn’s writing and Harris’ illustration work.  The story is entertaining & engaging (at times violent & shocking) while fresh & exciting.  At last year’s EmeraldCityComiCon, I inadvertently told Tony Harris that he had been fired from the title when I informed him how disappointed I was he wasn’t working with Vaughn anymore (I thought that they were making a change in artist when he took a break and a guest artist stepped in).  I think I scared the Hell out of him for a moment, until I realized my mistake and corrected myself.  I guess I was just returning the favor by giving him a jolt, just like he and Vaughn give me each month.  (As a side note: Vaughn and Harris are almost ALWAYS on time with their title, I don’t think they’ve ever missed a month).

#4: Ed Brubaker and Steve Epting: The Marvels Project

Ed Brubaker is one of my favorite writers right now (see #1 below).  He is so much fun to read, and I love the work he and Steve Epting are doing together on The Marvels Project book.  They are re-telling the early stories of  key Avengers characters, and placing them deep in the pulp-inspired history that created comic books in the first place.  By weaving real-world historical figures and events into the story, they are making the supernatural seem real.  And the covers from my friend, Steve McNiven don’t hurt either.

#3: Mark Millar and John Romita Jr.: Kick-Ass

Mark Millar appears for a second time on the list, this time by teaming up with the unparalleled John Romita Jr.  They have combined their talents to bring us one of the coolest, craziest books on the shelves today.  Every month or so, I stop by The Comic Stop in Lynnwood to pick up the contents of my subscription box.  Without fail, the Kick-Ass title is always the first book I read.  Now that the story has been turned into a major Hollywood movie (as most great books do), I hope more people will discover the original material.  Kick-Ass is … well, pretty kick ass!

#2: Justin Grey and Jimmy Palmiotti: Jonah Hex

This team of co-writers made the list (toward the top, no less) because of their consistent ability to entertain in 22 short pages.  Grey and Palmiotti have such a natural style with their character dialog, and they can create a creative and compelling story that wraps up between covers (very few times have they carried a story for more than one issue — often times, they tell more than one tale in a single issue … and it’s always engrossing).  The stable of artists they work with are wildly different from each other, and a perfect fit for each story (I especially love the realism of Billy Tucci’s recent work).

#1: Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips: Criminal, The Sinners

Sitting high  on the top of my Top Ten Team-Ups list are Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips.  Having teamed up many times in the past, the duo gets better with each title they take on.  From Criminal, to Sleeper, to Incognito, and back to Criminal again, the creative crew is the best comic book team since Lee & Kirby (in my humble opinion — but that’s what this post is all about). Phillips’ artwork superbly frames up the noir tales that Brubaker creates.  His art is rough, and dark — just like the characters.  I am jealous of Sean’s ability to convey so much emotion with his mastery of negative space (and his painted works are always cool too).  A special mention must be made for the compelling colors of Val Staples.  Brubaker also shares his love for the medium by providing reviews of classic movies, books, or pulps (often through a guest essayist).   Brubaker and Phillips are so good, they really make you care about the bad guys in their winning work.

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When I downloaded the Dragon dictation app I didn’t have very high expectations but the price was right…FREE. At best I was hoping for about a 75% accuracy and I figured I’d play around with it a bit then delete it. The user interface is clean and simple, the app doesn’t try to do too much.

With my first try I spoke 12 words and it got 11 out of 12 correct. The word that was dictated wrong was easy to correct with a drop down menu or opening the keyboard. My next test was to include some, well how should I put this…adult language. Dragon handled it like a champ and got 100% accuracy while included one “*” in each word. These tests were done in my (somewhat quiet) office, I figured the real test was while driving home. I was impressed that in a noisier environment the dictation was surprisingly accurate missing only 1 out of 10 words.

The limit in length is 30 seconds but for a txt message or email sent from a phone I think that’s plenty.

Once the dictation is complete you’re given the option to open email, txt message or send to clipboard.

An app that I figured would quickly get deleted is going to actually moving closer to my home screen if not actually on the home screen.

Screen Shots:

Dragon Dictation Screen Shot

Dragon Dictation Screen Shot

Link to yahoo article on the updated privacy statement.

Dragon/Nuance web site.

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3. How To Add Multiple Profiles in Bump

For the past few months I was (happily) using Todo developed by Appigo. The user-interface is good, the synchronization between the app and iCal was effective & push notifications worked most of the time. A couple of times I contacted Appigo customer service and got prompt/helpful feedback. Todo retails for $9.99 and has a four star average rating.

After using Todo for awhile I didn’t really think I was in the market for a similar app, especially for another paid app but then came 2Do…

I read a couple of reviews of 2Do and saw some screen shots, the user-interface looked quite polished & the feature list was impressive. After some though and a sale price I broke down and purchased 2Do. Saying the UI is polished is an understatement, 2Do has taken iPhone UI to a new level. The design is extremely useful/intuitive, the UI is customizable & the features are really well thought out. Syncing with iCal seamless & so far Push notifications have worked great. 2Do retails for $5.99 and also has a four star average rating.

Wrapping it all up…I was happy with Todo but 2Do has taken UI & features to a new level that all iPhone apps should shoot for. Now back to knocking things off the 2Do list.

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